Steering-gear for vessels



(No Model.)

B. H. CHASE & J. J. DALY.

STEERING GEAR FOR VESSBLS.

No. 497,706. Patented May 16,1898.

TATES PATENT OFFICE.

RALPH H. CHASE AND JOHN J. DALY, OF JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA.

STEERING-GEAR FOR VESSELS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 497,706, dated May 16, 1893.

Application filed October 14, 1892- Serial No. 448,900- (No model.)

To (ZZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, RALPH H. CHASE and JOHN J. DALY, citizens of the United States of America, residing at Jacksonville, in the county of Duval and State of Florida, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steering-Gear for Vessels; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this speci flcation.

This invention relates to improvements in steering apparatus for Vessels.

The object of the invention is to provide a cheap, simple and efficient means for operating or turning the rudder of a vessel by means of air, steam, or other fluid pressure; and it consists in providing the rudder post with a cross-bar or wheel over which passes flexible connections, said connections being also passed around pulleys on a traveling carriage which is reciprocated by a piston operated by air, steam or other fluid pressure, so that as the piston is moved either in or out the rudder will be turned, as will be hereinafter fully set forth and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification: Figure l is a side elevationshowing our improved steering gear applied. Fig. 2 is a plan view.

A designates the rudder, the post a of which is provided with a suitable disk or cross-bar B, which is attached to therudder so as to lie at right angles therewith. To this disk are attached two flexible connections 0 and D which are passed over pulleysc and cl on the carriage E, said carriage being mounted on tracks so as to move to and from the rudder head.

F designates a cylinder having pipes or ports and suitable valves whereby pressure may be applied to the piston, the piston head being attached to the piston-rod f which is connected to the carriage E. To one side of the cylinder, or adjacent thereto, are attached brackets which support a guide roller or pulley O, and on the opposite side of the cylinder may be attached a fastening device 0 to which one end of the flexible connection 0 is secured.

The flexible connection D after passing over the pulley cl on the carriage is secured to a suitable fastening device (1. The flexible connections where they are attached to the disk or cross-bar B may have suitable devices for taking up the slack thereof.

In operation when any suitable fluid, as air or steam under pressure, is admitted to the cylinder on one side of the piston it will cause the carriage to move, which movement will draw on one of the flexible connections while the other is slackened, so that the rudder will be moved to port orstarboard according to the direction of the movement of the piston.

This device is extremely simple and can be applied to vessels and takes up but little room, and it may be used either in connection with other devices for operating the rudder or independent thereof, it being understood that by the proper manipulation of the valves,

which may be similar to those of direct acting engines, the movement of the piston rod and carriage can be under complete control.

Having thus described our invention, we claim 1. In a power steering apparatus for vessels, the combination of a disk carried by the rudder head, flexible connections attached to said disk and guided around pulleys carried by a carriage, said carriage being connected to the power actuating piston-rod, substantially as shown.

2. The combination with the piston-rod carrying pulleys or guides, flexible connections (3 and D attached to the rudder-head substantially as shown, one of the connections passing directly over one of the guides actuated by the piston-rod and the other indirectly over the same, the opposite ends of the flexible connections being secured on opposite sides of the carriage, so that when the piston rod is moved the power thereof will only be exerted upon one of the flexible connections, substantially as shown.

3. In a power steering apparatus for vessels, the combination of a disk or cross-bar attached to the rudder head, a movable carriage adapted to be actuated from a power driven piston rod, said carriage having rollers or guides c and d, a roller or guide 0 over rudder, the connection 0 leading therefrom around the roller O'andback around the roller r 5 c, the connection D passing in an opposite direction around the roller d, the ends of the flexible connections being removably secured at points on opposite sides of the carriage, substantially as shown.

In testimony whereof We affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

RALPH H. CHASE. JOHN J. DALY.

Witnesses:

W. 1-1. HARWICK, H. O STRAWN. 

